PALESTINE: PEACE NOT APARTHEID
review by
Larry Shallenberger
PALESTINE: PEACE NOT APARTHEID
by Jimmy Carter
(Simon and Schuster)
Reader Appeal: Adults
Genre: Politics
Jimmy Carter is the first president of whom I have any significant memories. I recall watching Walter Cronkite on the evening news and watching images of President Carter attempting to broker the Israeli/Egyptian peace from Camp David. So when I saw that ITunes carried an audiobook version of PALESTINE: PEACE NOT APARTHEID, I downloaded the volume in preparation for a long car trip across the state.
While I found Carter’s reading of his book somewhat flat and monotonous, I was intrigued by the notion of listening to the voice of a world leader and Nobel Prize winner within the walls of my humble mini-van.
President Carter argues that the ongoing conflict between the Arab community and Israel can come to an end when two conditions are met. First, the Arab nations must guarantee the existence and security of Israel. Israel must be granted the right to live in peace within its own borders. Secondly, Israel must relinquish the occupied Arab territories that it has held since 1967 (The Gaza Strip and the West Bank). Israel must agree to limit its borders to those specified by U.N. Resolution 242.
The very title of the book, PALESTINE: PEACE NOT APARTHEID has drawn the criticism of pro-Israel groups. Some have taken offense that Carter is claiming that Israel currently has policy of apartheid with the Arabs in the occupied territories. President Carter denies the charge, but insists that Israel has a choice to make: It can either establish peace by returning the land it seized in the wake of the 1967 war, or drift into an apartheid-like policy with the Palestinians in an attempt to quell Arab resistance and terrorist.
While it might not add up to apartheid, Carter provides detailed accounts of Palestinian civil rights being violated: Arabs are subjected to being rounded up and imprisoned to provide Israel leverage in prisoner exchanges; Israeli troops interfere with Palestinian elections; Palestinian shipments of produce and perishable goods are detained until they spoil; Palestinians have limited assess to legal representation; and Arab movement within the occupied territories is limited by military check points and barbed wired fences being erected around several Arab communities. Carter believes the effect of these policies will be that Israel colonists will be able to continue to settle in the Palestinian territories without ever having to encounter an Arab. Critics of Carter point out that several of these policies are in place to limit the activities of terrorists. Moreover, some of Carters’ detractors accuse him of hyperbole.
Also at stake is whether Carter’s policy of engaging Arab negotiations is realistic. Expecting Israel to dialogue with nations that do not, or have not recognized Israel’s right to exist seems counterproductive to some. To expect Israel to dialogue with nations that have endorsed or even funded terrorist activity against Israel would appear to be a fruitless endeavor. Carter, however, points out the Hamilton-Baker report (the famed Iraq Study Group) arrived at the same conclusion. Dialoguing with distrusted nations is a difficult road to peace. However, it appears to be the only way forward.
As a Christian, I appreciate Carter’s ability to look at the Israeli-Arab through the lens of faith while still being nuanced. Despite his critics, Carter expresses his sympathies for Israel opening in the opening chapters. Carter admits that being raised on stories of King David and the Promised Land gave him an interest in the Israel that led to his passion for modern day peace in the Middle East. However, Carter is able to be pro-Israel and be willing to hold Israel accountable for human rights violation. It's reasonable to recognize that Israel’s human rights record provokes terrorism without going so far as saying that Arab terrorism is justified. Christians can affirm Israel’s historic status as God’s “chosen people” (and some Christians hold that the modern geo-political nation of Israel will hold a pivot role in history’s “end game”) without turning a blind-eye to the unjust behavior of our ally. To hold up the current cast of nations against the Book of Revelation for the purpose of assigning two-dimensional “good guys” and “bad guys” seems simplistic and even dangerous. Carter’s conclusions are up for debate but his ability to see the complexity of the situation should be praised.
I’d highly recommend PALESTINE: PEACE NOT APARTHEID to any Christian looking to add to his or her understanding of this important political and foreign policy matter. Consider skipping the audio book, though (I found it difficult to revisit key passages in a 4.5 hour long audio book) and pick up a copy of the printed version instead.
FAMILYFANS RATING: A
--LS